Avonte Maddox picked up the football he intercepted during his defensive debut Sunday and flipped it around with an ear-to-ear smile across his face on Wednesday.

His expression turned, however, when he reflected on his last play during the Eagles’ 26-23 overtime loss to the Titans.

“Moments like that happen,” the 22-year-old said when describing Corey Davis’ game-winning touchdown grab, on which Maddox slipped, allowing Davis to separate for the score. “It definitely hurt, but at the same time you got to get over it, short memory as a DB, got to move on to the next. Each and every day I’m watching, learning experience, I’m getting better so next time things like that won’t happen.”

The rookie cornerback out of Pittsburgh was already transitioning from the outside to nickel when coaches asked him to take up safety for the first time in his career last week, helping fill the void left by Rodney McLeod, who was put on injured reserve with a torn MCL.

He only had a few days of practice, but Maddox played 20 snaps – the first of his NFL career – as the team’s sixth defensive back.

Maddox showed well enough that coaches are already hinting he’ll have a larger role.

“Even though some things are new, he's got excellent quickness and great eyes for the football,” defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz said. “He’s got the combination of being able to cover and being able to play the run. All the things we liked about him as nickel, we also like about him as a safety.”

Maddox also emits confidence, a common characteristic in “Gang Green,” the Eagles secondary.

When coaches first told him he was making the position change, his immediate reaction was, “I got you.”

“I definitely got to be mentally tough and that’s one thing that I always have been, so any challenge they throw at me I’m willing to take on,” he said.

Maddox would go on to describe his fearlessness playing high school baseball in Detroit, when he stole home “plenty of times.”

It’s his time playing center field that might be more valuable though.

While McLeod was best known for his hard hitting, Maddox’s speed is his most noticeable trait. He ran a 4.39 40-yard dash at the NFL combine. His ability to fly all over the field is one reason he’s taken to safety.

“It’s fun,” he said. “They let you run left to right, cover some field, I’m fast so I get to cover a lot of ground.”

But the intricacies of the position – the angles, leverage, communication – they’re a work in progress, which is why every practice is critical to his growth.

“More practice I get, more reps I get there, the more comfortable I’ll be,” he said.

Second-year corner Sidney Jones, who missed the majority of his rookie season after tearing his Achilles at Washington’s Pro Day, understands that as well as anyone on the team.

Jones played on the outside as well in college, but he’s taken on the nickel role with the Birds.

“It’s more challenging,” Jones admitted. “It’s a lot more moving parts that you got to be on your p’s and q’s at all times. I like the challenge so, it keeps me very engaged.”

Jones had a highlight-reel moment in Week 3 against the Colts when he went through two different blockers to disrupt a red-zone opportunity, but like most of the Eagles secondary, he too had some struggles against the Titans.

“Every week you’ve got to put your best effort forward,” he said. “You go to be sharp every week and if we get too laxed or whatever, you’re going to get exposed, not saying that I did, but every week is just a learning experience.”

Jones and Maddox have leaned heavily on veteran Malcolm Jenkins to accelerate their learning curve. Jones called him a role model both on and off the field, while Maddox noted that Jenkins is making him call out plays during practice to get him more comfortable communicating.

Both also realize it’s not about knowing everything by tomorrow. It’s about getting one-percent better every day.

Jones sees that with Maddox.

“We have full confidence in him,” he said. “If we didn’t, he wouldn’t be back there.”

“It’s like school,” Maddox added. “You go in and you’re learning something new every day and you just keep studying.”